October 17, 2018

D.C. Group Paying AL Pro-Abortion Campaigners

Washington, D.C.-based Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity (URGE) is hiring people in the Montgomery area to fight Amendment Two, which is up for constitutional referendum on the upcoming general election ballot. In documents posted online, the organization formerly known as Choice USA "seeks committed people in Montgomery who are passionate about reproductive/social justice to help implement [their] voter engagement campaign." Read more...

July 24, 2018

Abortion Key in Pennsylvania Governor's Race

For both supporters and opponents of abortion access, Pennsylvania’s gubernatorial election has taken on new importance in the wake of President Donald Trump’s election. With conservative Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh expected to replace retiring swing vote Justice Anthony Kennedy, the Court could roll back or overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 case legalizing abortion nationwide. If that happened, states would decide what level of access people who can get pregnant have to abortion. Read more...

June 27, 2018

Abortion Top Issue in South Carolina Race

Two weeks before the primary that decided if he stays in office, Gov. Henry McMaster pointed at a building near downtown Columbia housing what he called "the most extreme, the most destructive organization in this country today." "There are young children, unborn children who are being killed right now as we're standing here just up that hill at Planned Parenthood," McMaster said at a news conference outside a faith-based pregnancy center. "There are young women who are having abortions." Read more...

June 21, 2018

U.S. Pulls Out of Pro-Abortion Council

The United States will be exiting the United Nations Human Rights Council, Ambassador Nikki Haley confirmed, citing the body’s record of failing and neglecting its titular mission. Haley blasted the council, which has promoted abortion and the LGBT agenda, as “a protector of human rights abusers, and a cesspool of political bias,” Fox News reports. Read more...

May 30, 2018

Why Was Pope Francis Silent?

While the world reeled at the alleged comments Pope Francis recently made on homosexuality, it also noticed the pontiff's deafening silence on Ireland's now-lost abortion referendum. Pope Francis allegedly told a male victim of priestly sex abuse that God "made" him gay and that's "okay," which made headlines around the world. The Vatican press office wouldn't confirm or deny the comment. Many have noted the Catholic Church's minimal role in the campaign to save the pro-life Eighth Amendment, partly because the homosexual sex abuse crisis was so bad in Ireland that it shattered the Church's credibility. Read more...

May 26, 2018

Ireland Votes to End Abortion Ban

Ireland voted decisively to repeal one of the world’s more restrictive abortion bans, sweeping aside generations of conservative patriarchy and dealing the latest in a series of stinging rebukes to the Roman Catholic Church. In the past three years alone, Ireland has installed a gay man as prime minister and has voted in another referendum to allow same-sex marriage. Read more...

May 05, 2018

U2 Comes Out as Pro-Abortion

The popular Irish band U2 tweeted its support for repealing Ireland’s pro-life Eighth Amendment and legalizing abortion on demand across the Emerald Isle. U2’s lead singer Bono is known around the world for openly proclaiming Christianity as his faith. There is even a “U2-charist” movement aimed at normalizing U2 songs as church music. Read more...

April 28, 2018

Pro-Lifer Wins Arizona Special Election

The pro-life Republican backed by two national pro-life groups won the special election against a pro-abortion physician in Arizona's 8th Congressional district to fill the seat vacated by Rep. Trent Franks. Debbie Lesko, a former state lawmaker, beat Democrat Dr. Hiral Tipirneni Tuesday in a special House election by 5 percentage points. The seat opened up after Franks' December 8 resignation following allegations of misconduct. Read more...

South Bend Mayor Vetoes Women's Center

Mayor Pete Buttigieg has announced his decision to veto a rezoning bill that would allow a pro-life center to move right next to a proposed abortion clinic. The Common Council approved plans to rezone the area along Lincolnway West between the airport and Bendix Drive so Women's Care Center -- which is an organization against abortion -- could put a location there. Read more...

April 09, 2018

Planned Parenthood Slams Trump Nominee

President Donald Trump has held true to his promise to nominate pro-life judges to key judicial roles. One of his latest, Wendy Vitter, a strong pro-life advocate, is up for a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to consider her confirmation. But Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion groups are lobbying aggressively against Vitter, claiming she would be "disastrous" for the future of legalized abortion. Read more...

March 28, 2018

Pro-Lifers Denied Booth at AK Health Fair

While planning to set up a booth at the Juneau Community Health Fair at Thunder Mountain High School on March 17, the Alaskans For Life, Inc. group found out their booth was not welcomed at this year's event. "We have been involved with the fair for 30 years," Sidney Heidersdorf, President of Alaskans For Life, Inc., Juneau, said in a phone interview Monday. "It is a very straightforward booth." Read more...

Ireland Sets Abortion Referendum Date for May 25

Ireland will hold a referendum on May 25 on whether or not to liberalize its abortion law, the first opportunity in 35 years to overhaul one of the world's strictest regimes that has long divided the once deeply Catholic nation. Voters will be asked if they wish to repeal an amendment to the constitution that was inserted following a 1983 referendum to enshrine the equal right to life of the mother and her unborn child, and to instead enable parliament to set the laws. Read more...

March 26, 2018

Abortion, LGBT Groups Join Forces

The world's top abortion and LGBT activist groups have joined forces to stop the Trump administration from implementing its international pro-life agenda at the UN women's conference in New York. It remains to be seen whether the U.S. ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, will buckle under the intimidation at this conference, and in the future. Read more...

January 22, 2018

Trump: Abortion Law Must Change

President Donald Trump encouraged participants in their opposition to abortion as he delivered his March for Life satellite address from the Rose Garden; he assured them that "every life is sacred, that every child is a precious gift from God."
The president told the tens of thousands of marchers that the ignominious Roe v. Wade 1973 Supreme Court case "resulted in some of the most permissive abortion laws anywhere in the world," likening the United States to China and North Korea in its abortion legislation. Read more...

Polish Pro-Life Office Vandalized

Polish abortion activists vandalized a pro-life political party's headquarters as they protested a bill to protect unborn babies with disabilities from abortion. Vandalism, harassment, threats and other forms of violence have become almost routine against pro-lifers in the past few years. Across the world, individual pro-lifers and pro-life groups are facing increasing hostility from abortion activists who resort to violence as an answer to their problems. Read more...

January 16, 2018

'My Goal Is to Make Abortion Unthinkable'

A former Planned Parenthood health center director says her main goal is not to make abortion illegal or even to defund Planned Parenthood, but, instead to make the entire idea of abortion “unthinkable.” Abby Johnson, now a national pro-life leader, says it is understandable many pro-life activists are focused on eliminating taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood. Read more...

December 30, 2017

Nebraska OKs Baby Killer License Plate

Planned Parenthood of the Heartland says it has submitted enough applications to ensure its own license plates will be available as an alternative to Nebraska drivers once the state's "Choose Life" plates go on sale in January. The Planned Parenthood plates, which read "My Body, My Choice," will cost $70. Motorists should be able to order them in the next few days, Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles Director Rhonda Lamm said. In a news release, Planned Parenthood said it submitted 263 applications for the plate, surpassing the state's requirement of 250 to begin printing an organizational plate. Read more...

November 29, 2017

Despite Attacks, Roy Moore Leads in Poll

Alabama voters are increasingly skeptical of the accusations against GOP Senate nominee Roy Moore, according to new polling released this week that also shows Mr. Moore has recovered his lead in the race. In the middle of November Mr. Moore had lost his lead in the Change Research survey of voters, but is once again back on top in a survey with a 49-44 advantage, the polling company said. Read more...

November 27, 2017

Did the Bishops' Vote Disrespect the Pope?

Far from being some sort of act of disrespect to the pope, a vote for Archbishop Naumann was a vote to affirm the bishops' broad-gauged pro-life position, which has developed "synodally" over time, while privileging several of the life issues — abortion, to be sure, and, increasingly, euthanasia — rather than muting those issues for the sake of others. Read more...

November 07, 2017

Second-Trimester Abortion a 'Brutal Procedure'

Attorneys for the state of Texas defended a law restricting the most common second-trimester abortion procedure with testimony from a doctor who described it as a "brutal procedure in which a living human being is torn to pieces." Earlier this year the Republican-led Legislature passed Senate Bill 8, a set of comprehensive abortion regulations that banned dilation and evacuation — a medical procedure used to remove a fetus using surgical tools — unless the fetus is deceased. It is the most common method used to perform an abortion in the second trimester. Read more...

Ottawa Students Ban Pro-Life Clubs

A pro-life student group at the University of Ottawa has been censored and stripped of club status because their mandate promotes human rights for all human beings. In a follow-up recent decision, the Student Union on November 5th has now voted to have the Student Union be a "pro-choice" entity only supporting groups that support legalized abortion. The section reads that Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO) will "affirms a person's right to choose. No SFUO resources, space, recognition, or funding will be allocated to enhance groups/individuals with the primary/sole purpose of pro-life activities." Read more...

October 30, 2017

Hiding the 'Dark Side of Abortion'

The Pro Life Campaign (PLC) has accused the Oireachtas Committee on the Eighth Amendment of trying to suppress the "dark side of abortion" in order to promote the repeal of the Constitution's restriction on terminations. The claim was made in a statement coinciding with a protest outside the British Embassy in Dublin marking the 50th anniversary of the introduction of legalised abortion in Britain. The PLC's Dr Ruth Cullen said that when the 1967 Abortion Act was passed at Westminster, nobody envisaged that it would lead to a situation where one in every five pregnancies is now aborted and where 200,000 abortions take place every year. Read more...

Katie Ascough: A Blow to Freedom of Speech

The President of UCD Students’ Union, Katie Ascough, who has been impeached following a referendum by students, has today described the circumstances leading up to her removal as a blow to freedom of speech, of thought, and of association. Last week 69% of the 6,600 students who turned out to vote, voted in favour of removing Ms Ascough - a pro-life activist - from office despite her explanation that information she asked be removed from a student handbook was only removed after concerns were raised about the legality of publishing unsolicited information around price lists and web sites that sell abortion pills. Read more...

UK Urged to Ban Pro-Life Protests

One hundred thirteen British Members of Parliament have signed a letter asking the UK Home Secretary to ban pro-life vigils outside abortion businesses. The letter was composed by Rupa Huq, the Ealing MP who has been openly campaigning in Parliament against the quiet pro-life presence outside the Marie Stopes Ealing abortion clinic since January. Among the signatories of this letter, meant to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Abortion Act, are Jeremy Corbyn, the far-left leader of the Labour Party, and Vince Cable, who replaced Tim Farron as the leader of the Liberal Democrats. (Farron stepped down after relentless media questioning concerning his Christian beliefs.) Read more...

October 12, 2017

Twitter Blocks Pro-Life Campaign Ad

Twitter has blocked a campaign ad by Republican Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn — a current representative from Tennessee — asserting that it contained an "inflammatory statement" about abortion that could no longer be promoted on the site. In the ad, Blackburn states that, during her time in Congress, she "fought Planned Parenthood, and we stopped the sale of baby body parts," referencing her role as chair of the House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives. Read more...

October 04, 2017

Group Wants a Pro-Life HHS Secretary

Leading pro-life organizations are asking President Trump to nominate a pro-life advocate as the next Secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services. President Donald Trump is considering a new appointment in the wake of the resignation by pro-life former Congressman Tom Price. With extensive purview over abortion issues as they relate to conscience protections, abortion funding and other concerns, leading pro-life advocates want to ensure that the next secretary of the department is pro-life. Read more...

September 28, 2017

Judge Roy Wins US Senate Primary

Roy Moore won a landslide victory against Sen. Luther Strange in a primary runoff for Alabama's open senate seat on Tuesday. At 9:18 p.m. EST, the Senate Leadership Fund, a GOP superpac, conceded the race. The New York Times announced that Moore won at 9:27 p.m. EST, with 45 percent of precincts reporting. Moore is the former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. He is known for his staunchly pro-life, pro-marriage views and support of Christianity in the public square. Read more...

September 13, 2017

Pro-Lifers Forced to Promote Abortion Clinics

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on behalf of pregnancy care centers and pro-life doctors in Illinois and Hawaii who are being forced to advertise for the abortion industry. The federal Church and Weldon amendments do not allow states which receive federal funding to compel medical personnel to operate contrary to their conscience or religious beliefs. ADF attorneys represent pregnancy care centers and physicians in both a state and federal lawsuit in Illinois and a federal lawsuit in Hawaii. So far, courts have issued injunctions against the forced-advertising law at issue in both Illinois cases. Read more...

Nurses Blocked From 'Reverse Abortion' Classes

Acting at the behest of abortion activists in the state legislature and online media, the Board of Nursing reversed its decision from just a month prior, sending Heartbeat International a letter to demand that the pro-life pregnancy help network "cease and desist" offering nurses continuing education units (CEUs) for Abortion Pill Reversal classes. The Board's sudden reversal seems a direct effort to deny a woman access to her own choice during an unexpected pregnancy, Heartbeat International president Jor-El Godsey said. Read more...

September 01, 2017

Effort to Redefine 'Pro-Life' Fails

In order to deal with the dissonance of being a member of the Democratic Party, these pro-life Democrats have tried to redefine the term “pro-life.” They suggest that conservatives are not pro-life, because they do not support spending bills to increase social programs for the poor in our society. They argue that truly pro-life individuals must be concerned about the 4-year-old and the 40-year-old, and not just the developing fetus. Read more...

August 29, 2017

University Votes to Ban Pro-Life Club

A New Zealand university student body voted this week to reject a pro-life club on campus. Pro-abortion students have been trying to abolish the pro-life club ever since it began in 2010. This week, they succeeded. Pending legal review, the Aukland University Student's Association said it will no longer recognize the club. In a referendum vote this week, about 1,600 students voted to ban the pro-life club, while about 1,100 voted to keep it, according to the report. Read more...

August 28, 2017

Toronto Wants to Ban Pro-Life Signs

Toronto council member Sarah Doucette wants to shut down pro-life protests that depict the results of an abortion with frank pictures of severed fetuses. Doucette finds the images “disturbing” and she is angry that pro-life activists are using them to illustrate what happens to a fetus during an abortion. She claims she has had hundreds of complaints from her constituents and now wants to sponsor a bylaw to ban the pictures in the city. Read more...

August 18, 2017

Pro-Death Groups Seek City of Charlotte's Help

Pro-choice activists are calling on the city of Charlotte to do more to protect women from harassment when they go to an abortion clinic. In a press conference held outside of the Government Center in uptown, multiple groups criticized the city, and said Charlotte isn’t doing enough to enforce laws that would help prevent women from feeling intimidated by pro-life groups that are protesting outside the clinics. Read more...

August 17, 2017

Democrats Still Held Hostage by Pro-Aborts

The Democratic Party has been the captive of the pro-abortion lobby for far too long. It is time for the Democratic Party to be liberated from the dominance of the radical feminist abortion extreme. It is time for the Democratic Party to recognize and announce that pro-life candidates (and voters) are fully welcome in their political tent. Read more...

August 15, 2017

Pro-Aborts Turn on One of Their Own

California Gov. Jerry Brown is decidedly pro-abortion, but even he thinks the Democratic Party should welcome pro-lifers. His statements about pro-life Democrats added to the growing debate about whether the party should embrace pro-lifers again. Brown quickly faced harsh criticism from abortion activists for his comments. Read more...

August 14, 2017

On Abortion, Democrats Dig In

Party leaders are debating whether they should support pro-life candidates, especially in conservative or moderate districts, or require that all Democrats seeking public office unequivocally support Roe v. Wade and legalized abortion, which is enshrined in the party platform. Read more...

February 19, 2017

A Chance to Defeat More Pro-Death Senators

In 2018, there are many opportunities to replace a pro-abortion United States Senator with a pro-life Senator. Next year Democrats are defending 25 seats, while Republicans are defending only eight. Generally speaking, the best pickup opportunities are in states that voted for pro-life President Donald Trump in 2016, but which have pro-abortion Democratic senators. Read more...

February 04, 2017

Pro-Life Leaders Wary of Obamacare Replacement

Dozens of pro-life leaders sent a letter to Congress Thursday afternoon urging Republican senators and representatives to honor their commitment to prohibit taxpayer-funding of elective abortion coverage under any health-care bill to replace Obamacare. "Currently, any bill funding healthcare must carry restrictions on abortion funding or it will end up funding the brutal practice of abortion," the letter states. "That is why the Republican platform rightly calls for a 'permanent ban on federal funding and subsidies for abortion and healthcare plans that include abortion.' The platform continues stating, 'We will not fund or subsidize healthcare that includes abortion coverage.' President Trump also pledged his opposition to taxpayer funding for abortion in his 2016 letter to Pro-life Leaders." Read more...

Live Action Backs De-Fudning Effort

Pro-life advocacy group Live Action, joined with members of Congress, called for the ending of taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion provider. "I hope that the sands of time blow over that Capitol dome before we ever give one more dime of taxpayer dollars to this insidious, deceptive, and evil enterprise," said Rep. Trent Franks. The Arizona Republican likened pro-Planned Parenthood talking points to "fake news" and "alternative facts." Read more...

Pro-Life Legislator Receives Death Threats

A pro-life Texas state lawmaker and his family are under state protection after receiving multiple death threats related to his bill to ban abortions. Texas state Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington, and his family are being protected by the Texas Department of Public Safety, and received additional help from the Arlington Police Department and Tarrant County sheriff's office, Micah Cavanaugh, Tinderholt's chief of staff, said in a statement. His political consultant Luke Macias said law enforcement also is investigating the multiple death threats against Tinderholt and his family. Read more...

January 30, 2017

A Brief History of the 'Pro-Life' Label

It was a marketing masterstroke: the word "life" has been linked to the opposition of abortion since, and being "pro-life" has come to mean specifically opposing abortion—and not, for instance, opposing war or the death penalty. The success of the label is largely due to its ability to frame the issue not as standing against something (a woman's choice) but in favor of it (life). Read more...

January 11, 2017

Sessions Pledges to 'Respect' Roe v. Wade

Attorney General-designate Sen. Jeff Sessions pledged during his confirmation hearing Tuesday to "respect" Roe v. Wade as attorney general, despite the fact that he disagrees with the ruling. The Alabama Republican tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to lead the Justice Department was quizzed by several of his Senate colleagues about his position on abortion. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) asked Sessions about his stance on enforcing Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion, even though he is opposed to abortion. Sessions, who once described Roe as "one of the worst, colossally erroneous Supreme Court decisions of all time," said the ruling is nonetheless the law of the land and would be enforced. Read more...

Kentucky Attorney General Shirks Duties

Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear said he will fight a legal challenge to a new Kentucky law mandating ultrasounds for women seeking abortions — even though he believes such a defense comes with "risks and potential costs." But Beshear said he will not attempt to defend another new state law banning abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy — should it also be challenged — saying it is "clearly unconstitutional." The decision of Beshear, a Democrat, drew rebukes from Republicans, who control both the House and Senate and had fast-tracked the abortion bills as priority measures during the first week of this year's legislative session. Read more...

January 10, 2017

Pro-Life Group to Begin Scorecard Campaign

As the 115th Congress is underway, a pro-life group is touting a new means of holding pro-life members accountable - a scorecard. "The Scorecard will help ensure accountability of Members to their constituents while identifying true defenders of the unborn in U.S. Congress," March for Life Action announced. "At March for Life Action we aren't just looking for politicians who vote pro-life - we are looking for pro-life champions in the mold of Henry Hyde," Tom McClusky, vice president of government affairs at the pro-life group March for Life Action, stated. Read more...

January 06, 2017

Ryan Says Planned Parenthood Will Lose Funding

House Speaker Paul Ryan said that a measure stripping funds from Planned Parenthood would be included in the bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act. House Republicans' decision to tie defunding the women's health organization to the Obamacare repeal effort could turn off moderate Republicans, complicating the fragile coalition that the party must maintain in order to undo the massive health care law. Read more...

Schumer Promises to Block Pro-Life Nominee

Pro-abortion Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) was busy rattling sabers. In an interview with CNN's Dana Bash Schumer said, "The only way we're going to work with [Trump] is if he moves completely in our direction and abandons his Republican colleagues." For good measure, Schumer added, "Ninety, 95 percent of the time, we'll be holding his feet to the fire and holding him accountable." Read more...

August 18, 2015

Ben Carson: Abortion Not Acceptable After Rape, Incest

Republican presidential candidate and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson said Sunday that even rape and incest should not be exceptions to abortion bans, and criticized Planned Parenthood as having "racist" roots. "I believe that once conception has been achieved, that it is a human life," Carson said, after he was asked whether he believes abortion bans should exclude rape and incest. "What I have said is that, you know, I have spent my life trying to save life, not trying to destroy it." Read more...

August 15, 2015

Arkansas Moves to End Planned Parenthood Funding

Arkansas became the fourth state to move to cut funds to Planned Parenthood Federation of America despite Obama administration warnings that severing Medicaid money may violate federal law. Gov. Asa Hutchinson directed the state Department of Human Services to terminate its existing Medicaid agreement with Planned Parenthood, effective 30 days from the receipt of a letter dated Friday. Read more...

Utah Governor Stops Funding for Planned Parenthood

Gov. Gary Herbert instructed state agencies to stop distributing federal funds to the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah in a decision that took state lawmakers and Planned Parenthood officials by surprise. The governor's decision came amid a firestorm of controversy after the release of undercover videos purporting to show Planned Parenthood officials bargaining over the price of fetal tissue. Read more...

August 14, 2015

The Obama administration is threatening states attempting to defund Planned Parenthood–those trying to stop the flow of their Medicaid funds to the abortion provider–with potential violation of federal law and, ultimately, the cutting off of Medicaid funds to those states. Following the release of investigative videos exposing Planned Parenthood’s practice of harvesting the body parts of aborted babies for potential sale to biomedical companies, Alabama, Louisiana, and New Hampshire have canceled their Medicaid contracts with Planned Parenthood. Read more...

Idaho Will Not Investigate Fetal Tissue Videos

Idaho Governor Butch Otter has turned down a request by state lawmakers to launch an investigation into Planned Parenthood over a series of videos that allegedly depict executives from the health care provider negotiating the sale of fetal tissue for medical research. In a letter to state lawmakers, Otter, a Republican, writes, "I understand and share your concerns regarding recently released video of Planned Parenthood officials in other states. Their actions are shocking and deeply troubling." However, "there is no evidence a crime has been committed," Otter adds. Read more...

December 14, 2013

European Parliament Rejects Abortion as 'Human Right'

Members of the European Parliament have rejected a report which suggested that abortion be defined as a "human rights and public-health concern." The rejection of the report affirms the ability of the individual nations in the European Union to promote their own approach to sexual education and abortion policies. Read more...

January 15, 2013

Conference Knocks 'Cuomo's Abortion Expansion Plan'

The New York State Catholic Conference has put out a strongly worded memo of opposition to the Reproductive Health Act that, in case you missed their message, brands it as "Governor Cuomo's Abortion Expansion Plan." Cardinal Timothy Dolan came out against Cuomo's call for the measure — long sought by Democrats in the Legislature — immediately after it provided one of the most enthusiastic responses from the crowd in Wednesday's State of the State address ("It's her body, it's her choice!"). Read more...

April 30, 2012

Minnesota Governor Issues Second Abortion Veto

Gov. Mark Dayton has issued his second veto of an abortion bill in as many weeks. The governor issued an expected veto of a bill that would have required physicians to be physically present every time an abortion pill like RU-486 is prescribed, and again every time such a pill is swallowed. The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Joyce Peppin, R-Rogers, pitched it as a measure meant to protect women’s health in the event of side-effects from the pill. Read more...

State Denies License to Reopen Abortion Clinic

Alabama's health department said it had denied a company's application to take over a Birmingham abortion clinic that is now slated for closing over health violations, citing ties between the prospective operator and the current owner. Ochata Management, which sought state approval to run New Woman All Women Health Care, cannot operate the clinic because it is too close to the current operator, said a statement from the Alabama Department of Public Health. Read more...

Sebelius Unaware of Religious Liberty Cases

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius provided as much evidence as necessary as to why this administration has some incompetents running the show. While testifying before Congress, Sebelius was asked some direct questions about how she "balanced" concerns for religious liberty with the contraceptive mandate that is part of Obamacare. The result proves that her constitutional knowledge wouldn't fill the head of a pin. Does Sebelius know the three different tests applied to the Constitution to determine whether a piece of legislation balances principles? "I'm not a lawyer and I don't pretend to understand the nuances of the constitutional balancing tests," replied Sebelius. Read more...

March 19, 2012

Rep. Smith Slams Obama Over 'Abortion Surcharge' Rule

A leading pro-life lawmaker slammed the Obama administration this week after it issued regulations that provide for a so-called "abortion surcharge" in health care plans. The final rules, stemming from the health care overhaul, require plans that cover abortion to collect a separate fee of $1 or more directly from customers. The money would go toward abortion coverage. The intent of the rule was to make sure taxpayer subsidies do not finance abortions. Read more...

Birth Control Controversies a Fundraising Boon

The sudden focus on contraception and abortion in the 2012 campaign has meant a surge in fundraising for abortion rights groups that support women as congressional candidates. Emily’s List — whose mission is to elect pro-abortion rights Democratic women — has raised nearly twice as much for candidates at this point in the 2012 cycle as it did during the entire 2010 cycle, according to spokeswoman Jess McIntosh. And that’s with about eight months to go. Read more...

Gov. Corbett on Ultrasounds: 'Close Your Eyes'

At a news conference this week, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett was asked about a state bill that would require women seeking abortions to undergo a mandatory fetal ultrasound. The governor said he would support the bill as long as it wasn’t "obtrusive." Then Corbett said that for any woman who might object to the procedure, well, "you just have to close your eyes." Read more...

February 29, 2012

Abortion Finds Way Into MLK License Plate Debate

A bill to allow a special license plate to honor Martin Luther King Jr. to raise money for education and training in human rights may not sound controversial. But it created some, when a few lawmakers worried that it may help promote abortion or other actions they dislike. The House Transportation Committee still approved HB506 by Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck, D-Salt Lake City, on a 7-3 vote, and sent it to the full House. But not before a few lawmakers questioned if the "rights" it would help promote include abortion or government-funded welfare programs. Read more...

February 21, 2012

Women Protest Pro-Life Bills in Virginia

Hundreds of women locked arms and stood mute outside the Virginia State Capitol to protest a wave of anti-abortion legislation coursing through the General Assembly. Capitol and state police officers, there to ensure order, estimated the crowd to be more than 1,000 people — mostly women. The crowd formed a human cordon through which legislators walked before Monday’s floor sessions of the Republican-controlled legislature. Read more...

February 15, 2012

Pro-Death Group Fights Campaign Finance Limits

An abortion rights group filed a federal lawsuit today seeking to strike down a portion of the state’s campaign finance law that limits how much donors can give to political action committees. Personal PAC argues that the limits are unconstitutional and violate the First Amendment, citing a recentU.S. Supreme Courtcase that found expenditures independent of political candidates can’t be regulated. Read more...

February 11, 2012

Bishops Voice Objections to Birth Control Rule

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops denounced President Barack Obama's compromise over whether to require religiously affiliated institutions to provide contraception to female employees, saying the proposal raises "serious moral concerns," according to a statement posted on its website. "Today's proposal continues to involve needless government intrusion in the internal governance of religious institutions, and to threaten government coercion of religious people and groups to violate their most deploy held convictions," the statement said. Read more...

Religion and Birth Control: Not Just A GOP Fight

Catholic senators facing voters next fall have been openly critical of the original policy. One of them is Democrat Bob Casey, whose state of Pennsylvania is home to many Catholic voters. "I've said very clearly that I oppose the White House decision," Casey said. Another vulnerable Catholic Senate Democrat up for re-election this year is West Virginia's Joe Manchin. He, too, spoke out against the White House birth control policy hours before it was altered. Read more...

February 09, 2012

Birth Control Debate Flares

Birth control and religious freedom have suddenly become the dominant issue in the presidential race, an explosive issue with possible risks and benefits to both President Barack Obama and his leading challenger, Mitt Romney. The controversy over Obama's health care reform plan, which requires employee insurance policies to cover prescription contraceptives, has switched the focus of the nation's long-simmering dispute over reproductive rights from abortion to birth control. Read more...

February 07, 2012

Religious Liberty Under Obama Attack

Catholic pulpits and pews are increasingly inflamed with talk of a war on religion after the Obama administration's recent decision on employers' birth control coverage. "There can be no doubt that religious liberty in our country is in jeopardy," Monsignor W. Ronald Jameson warned on Saturday from inside Washington's historic Cathedral of St. Matthew. "This is the time to speak up. This is the time for all voices to be heard." Read more...

February 06, 2012

Graphic Anti-Abortion Ad Airs

The campaign of the Batavia man challenging House Speaker John Boehner in the March 6 Republican primary aired a graphic commercial with images of aborted fetuses during Super Bowl pre-game coverage on NBC's Cincinnati affiliate. "I am running against Speaker John Boehner because of his treachery. Mr. Boehner claims to be pro-life," David Lewis said in a statement. "I believed him until he voted to fund Planned Parenthood last year. Voters in the 8th district want an alternative to the establishment and that is what I am." Read more...

February 03, 2012

Obama Team Defends Birth Control Policy

The Obama administration is defending a policy requiring religious-affiliated employers to cover birth control through its insurance policies. "The Obama administration is committed to both respecting religious beliefs and increasing access to important preventive services," says a White House blog post by Cecilia Munoz, director of the House Domestic Policy Council. "And as we move forward, our strong partnerships with religious organizations will continue." Religious and political leaders have criticized the policy, saying it requires Catholic organizations to subsidize birth control despite objections to the practice. Read more...

February 02, 2012

Planned Parenthood Defends Obama

Following a barrage of criticism of the Obama administration from the Catholic Church, Planned Parenthood launched a national TV ad campaign praising newly mandated contraception coverage in health insurance plans, including those offered by religiously affiliated institutions. "President Obama and Secretary Sebelius stood strong to make sure all women — no matter where they work — will have access to birth control without a co-pay, saving them hundreds of dollars," the narrator says in the 30-second spot. Read more...

February 01, 2012

Obama Appoints 'Roe' Architect to Appeals Court

President Barack Obama is adding to his massive pro-abortion record by placing yet another abortion activist on a top federal appeals court — this time a lawyer credited with helping craft the Roe v. Wade decision. Obama has appointed Andrew Hurwitz to the 9th Circuit Court, the most liberal appeals court in the country based in San Francisco and covering laws approved in western states. Yet, according to the Daily Caller, Hurwitz was instrumental to providing some of the legal framework for Roe, which resulted in 54 million abortions. Read more...

January 30, 2012

Pro-Lifers Protest University of Scranton Speaker

Another showdown between a local Catholic institution and the Bishop of Scranton erupted, with conservative Catholic groups entering the debate on the side of Bishop Joseph Bambera. The Cardinal Newman Society, a group that scrutinizes Catholic colleges for adherence to doctrine, and the locally based American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family, and Property, joined forces to protest former U.S. Rep. Marjorie Margolies at the University of Scranton, an institution sponsored by the Society of Jesus. Read more...

Contraception Rule Draws Fire from Catholics

Catholic-based institutions say they will face tough decisions if they must start covering contraception and other reproductive services in their health care insurance to employees. "N.H. Catholic Charities would be forced to provide coverage for sterilization, abortion-inducing drugs and contraception or choose to not provide health care coverage to employees, or tragically stop serving non-Catholics who make up a high percentage of the needy we serve," said Nick Boudreau, spokesman for New Hampshire Catholic Charities. Read more...

Pro-Lifers Gather in Oak Brook to Renew Efforts

More than 400 people who oppose abortions listened to the story of a former Planned Parenthood employee turned anti-abortion activist at the annual Speak Out Illinois conference at an Oak Brook hotel. The event, organized around the theme "Reclaim America for Life," brought together members of more than 35 anti-abortion groups to work toward renewing and continuing efforts to end abortions. Read more...

January 27, 2012

Alveda King: Defund Planned Parenthood

Alveda King, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s niece, told The Daily Caller that Planned Parenthood should not receive any taxpayer funds and that her uncle opposed abortion. She encouraged President Barack Obama to watch films like "Blood Money" that show the high levels of genocide caused by abortion. "It's very clear that even if none of the three-plus million that goes to Planned Parenthood from the tax dollars every year [directly funds abortions], it enables them to use other dollars because they're being enabled by that tax grant so I do not believe that Planned Parenthood shouldn't receive any money from the taxpayers of America," she said. Read more...

January 26, 2012

Pro-Lifers March on Roe v Wade Anniversary

Neither cold temperatures nor pouring rain seemed to dampen the spirits of the tens of thousands who gathered for the annual March for Life in Washington. The march serves as an annual pro-life response to the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court's landmark decision legalizing abortion in the U.S. A number of lawmakers spoke at the rally launching the march, which began on the National Mall and proceeded several blocks to the steps of the Supreme Court. House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican, vowed to continue standing with pro-life advocates. Read more...